£1m bid to spice up the Curry Mile

A businessman has pledged to ‘save’ Manchester’s famous Curry Mile – by opening up a new £1 million restaurant. It was recently reported how the number of curry houses in Wilmslow Road, Rusholme, had halved over the past three years, leaving just 12 sit-down restaurants in business.

A businessman has pledged to ‘save’ Manchester’s famous Curry Mile – by opening up a new £1 million restaurant.

It was recently reported how the number of curry houses in Wilmslow Road, Rusholme, had halved over the past three years, leaving just 12 sit-down restaurants in business.

Many of the curry houses that gave the area its nickname have now been replaced by shisha bars – where customers smoke flavoured tobacco through pipes.

But now Jaf Siddiqi, pictured, says he can put the spice back into the famous stretch by opening a huge new Indian restaurant with tables for 120 diners. The new dining spot, called Malai, will open next month and will offer valet parking and a business club deal including free transfers to ferry clients between Wilmslow Road and Manchester city centre.

Mr Siddiqi, 30, said: "The Curry Mile has really slipped in the last 10 years, and the number of proper curry restaurants has noticeably reduced.

"Indian food is very close to my heart. I have been going to Curry Mile since I was a kid and my father has been eating there for 35 years.

"I really want to raise the bar on that stretch, I want to bring the culture back.

"Lots of people have said to me ‘Why spend £1m investment in an area which is so scruffy, where there’s so much competition?’.

"Curry Mile used to be synonymous with great Indian food. I want to restore that reputation. I want Malai to have that identity when we eventually expand. I want people to know it came from the original Curry Mile.

"I want people to get dressed up to go to Malai, for it to be the place you go for a special occasion."

Shabir Mughal, from Rusholme Traders’ Association, welcomed the new addition. He said: "It’s fantastic news that restaurants are coming back to Rusholme, we like to have good competition here.